Friday, April 3, 2009

As most of you know, I’m a huge movie fan – hence the name I chose for my blog. But I also love reading, even though these days I don’t read as much as I used to.

Unlike many people, one thing I don’t stress about is when books become movies – to me, it’s very clear that they are two completely different means of communication and one can never be exactly like the other. The book author has one point of view that may not be shared by the screenwriter and the director. It’s someone’s version about someone else’s work – it will never be the same but that doesn’t have to be something bad: I had tears in my eyes this morning after watching Jose Saramago’s reaction to Fernando Meirelles’ take on “Blindness”.

Now I give you my take on Brazilian chef Morena Leite’s pistachio brigadeiro – it is not exactly like hers, but still delicious.

Butter a large plate and set aside.Place the pistachios in a food processor and grind until it resembles wet sand.Mix the condensed milk, butter and ground pistachios in a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly – when the bottom of the pan starts to show and the mixture is a bit thicker, remove from heat and immediately pour into the prepared plate. Set aside to cool completely.To serve, place 2.5cm (1 inch) portions into individual serving spoons or roll into balls and place in a serving dish.

21 comments:

I'm happy to hear there are other people out there who accept film adaptations for what they are independent of the book that inspired them. I'm tired of people complaining about the movie not being like the book. They KNOW that's going to happen. Why do they keep going back to the theater then?

It looks delicious! I totally agree on your movie and book-view... I do however, always compare the two. Can't help it ofcourse. Sometimes the book is better then the film and sometimes the other way around. But that is all a matter of personal taste! I am sure my taste will go really well with these treats!

Patricia, I'm kind of incapable of comparing the book with the movie. I try not to be too judgmental. Last night we watched "Tell No One," a French adaptation of Harlan Coben's thriller, and honestly, I thought the film was so much more interesting. I felt the same way about "A Room With a View," even though E.M. Forster is a great writer. But I hated the film "Mystic River," because the book was so much more riveting emotionally. Just my two cents.

I can't help but compare, if I'm familiar with both the book and the film. Usually, the book wins too, but only because there are so many more nuances a book is capable of conveying. I haven't read Saramago's book, but I didn't love the movie, even though I found it interesting.

Brigadeiro with pistachios and no chocolate. what a fabulous and delicious idea. My mother started to lecture me about tradition and chocolate and stuff when I suggested making them. Anyway, thank you for putting this up and for your stunning pictures.

These were delightful! I probably didn't cook them quite long enough since they were a bit on the sticky side to pick up. They were way too yummy to waste, so I rolled mine into chickpea-sized balls, froze them briefly, then dipped half in white chocolate and half in bittersweet. I didn't bother tempering the chocolate -- beyond my skills for now! Anyway, the chocolate coating was really yummy. I made a second batch that I cooked a bit longer, then just rolled into ground pistachios -- delightful!